The War Domain (A NeoSeraphi Fix) PEACH

[NeoSeraphi]

The War Domain

Granted Power: You gain the Martial Weapon Proficiency or Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat with your deity's chosen weapon (if it is martial or exotic) as a bonus feat, as well as the Weapon Focus feat for your deity's chosen weapon as a bonus feat. You need not meet any prerequisites.

Spells:

1st: Rhino's Rush (SC)
2nd: Wraithstrike (SC)
3rd: Divine Critical*
4th: Righteous Fury (SC)
5th: Almighty Sword*
6th: Bite of the Werebear (SC)
7th: Greater Divine Power*
8th: Giant Size (Complete Arcane)
9th: Power Word Kill

*New spell, shown below

Divine Critical
Transmutation
Level: War 3
Components: V, S, DF
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Targets: One weapon or fifty projectiles, all of which must be in contact with each other at the time of casting
Duration: 10 min./level
Saving Throw: Will negates (harmless, object)
Spell Resistance: Yes (harmless, object)

As you cast the spell, the weapon or ammunition glows, and becomes infused with divine power.

This transmutation doubles the threat range of the weapon. A threat range of 20 becomes 19-20, a threat range of 19-20 becomes 17-20, and a threat range of 18-20 becomes 15-20. Unlike keen edge, this spell can be used on any type of weapon. If cast on arrows or crossbow bolts, the effect on a particular projectile ends after one use, whether or not the missile strikes its intended target. (Treat shuriken as arrows, rather than as thrown weapons, for the purpose of this spell.)

Multiple effects that increase a weapon’s threat range (such as the keen edge spell and the Improved Critical feat) don’t stack. You can’t cast this spell on a natural weapon, such as a claw.

If you cast this spell on your deity's favored weapon, the wielder also gains the benefits of the divine favor spell, cast at your CL, for the duration of the divine critical spell.

Almighty Sword
Evocation [Good]/[Law]/[Chaos]/[Evil]
Level: War 5

This spell functions exactly like holy sword, except that its effect and descriptor are based on your alignment. You may not choose more than one alignment component when you cast this spell. If you're Good, you cast holy sword. If you're Evil, you cast unholy sword, and you get a +5 unholy weapon that emits a magic circle against good. If you're Lawful, you cast lawful sword (Spell Compendium). If you're Chaotic, you cast chaos sword, which gives you a +5 anarchic weapon that emits a magic circle against law.

If you are neutral on both axises, you instead choose a single effect and descriptor from those described above.


Greater Divine Power
Level: War 7
Casting Time: 1 swift action

This spell functions exactly like divine power, except as noted above, and that the +6 bonus to your Strength is sacred (if your deity is good or neutral) or profane (if your deity is evil) and you gain 5 temporary hit points per caster level.

[Yitzi]

How is this different than the normal version? The only difference I see is that now it accommodates exotic favored weapons, but IIRC no deities with the war domain have exotic favored weapons anyway. (Of course, it'd be relevant for a homebrew deity, but it's a reasonable extension in that case anyway.)

[NeoSeraphi]

How is this different than the normal version? The only difference I see is that now it accommodates exotic favored weapons, but IIRC no deities with the war domain have exotic favored weapons anyway. (Of course, it'd be relevant for a homebrew deity, but it's a reasonable extension in that case anyway.)

Mayaheine, from Dungeonscape, has the War Domain and the bastard sword as her favored weapon. Xan Yae in Complete Divine has "Monk Weapons" listed as favored weapons, including kama, nunchaku, sai, shuriken and siangham, all of which are exotic, and Xan Yae offers the War Domain. Zuoken from the same book also has Monk Weapons and the War Domain. Mockery from the Faiths of Eberron book offers War and has the Kama as a favored weapon. Spirits of the Past from Faiths of Eberron has War and offers a Double Scimitar. Marduk from Sandstorm offers the Net and has the War Domain. Re-Horakhty from Deities and Demigods offers the War Domain and favors the Khopesh.

In short, Yitzi, you did not, in fact, recall correctly.

[Ziegander]

Well... if the only difference is that now you can take some Monk weapons or the Khopesh as your proficiency/focus, then I would hardly call this "Much Better than Before!" None of those weapons are even as good as the martial weapons you could easily take, so...

[NeoSeraphi]

Well... if the only difference is that now you can take some Monk weapons or the Khopesh as your proficiency/focus, then I would hardly call this "Much Better than Before!" None of those weapons are even as good as the martial weapons you could easily take, so...

That part was sarcasm. I just updated the War Domain to be RAW as it was RAI, in my opinion. (Otherwise, why would they give the War Domain to a deity with exotic weapons as favored weapons?)

I'll remove that line from the title, though.

[arguskos]

This isn't "much better than before". It merely gives niche gods the RAW option to do something that any reasonable DM would have permitted anyways. Was this really necessary? Have DMs seriously stiffed your War clerics of Re-Horakhty so often that you said "Damn it, time to rewrite the War domain!!1!!!!11!" :smallconfused:

I came in expecting you to have revamped the spell list to something that doesn't make me want to cry and didn't get it. If you want to make the War Domain "much better", please, by all means, the spell list could use it, but actually do something other than brew what reasonable DMs do anyways.

tl;dr: Not a bad idea, but a superfluous one.

EDIT: Apparently, someone beat me to it. I do support a proper rework of the domain though.

[Steward]

So, have you been hoarding all these homebrew classes, feats, domains, etc. so you could release hundreds of them all upon the world in the span of a week?

[NeoSeraphi]

I came in expecting you to have revamped the spell list to something that doesn't make me want to cry and didn't get it. If you want to make the War Domain "much better", please, by all means, the spell list could use it, but actually do something other than brew what reasonable DMs do anyways.


Hmm...an updated spell list? Now that I took a look at it, originally I thought War was alright because I thought blade barrier was War-only, but...

Yeah, now that I've re-examined it, it does kind of blow (like most Core Domains)

I think I'll crack open the Spell Compendium and see what I can do!

[NeoSeraphi]

So, have you been hoarding all these homebrew classes, feats, domains, etc. so you could release hundreds of them all upon the world in the span of a week?

What? No! This took me, like, five minutes! I typed it on a whim after reading a thread about how the War Domain doesn't grant EWF by RAW.

Edit: To clearly answer your strange question, everything that I homebrew, I do on the spur of the moment, I never hoard, I don't even type it into a Word doc, I just sit down and right it until I'm finished.

[arguskos]

Hmm...an updated spell list? Now that I took a look at it, originally I thought War was alright because I thought blade barrier was War-only, but...

Yeah, now that I've re-examined it, it does kind of blow (like most Core Domains)

I think I'll crack open the Spell Compendium and see what I can do!
It's pretty awful (not as bad as Law or something, but still). Blade Barrier isn't even that good.

Taking a long look at it might be worthwhile. Flame Strike/Blade Barrier are ok, but the Power Words need to go away and a few other spells could probably be removed as well.


Edit: To clearly answer your strange question, everything that I homebrew, I do on the spur of the moment, I never hoard, I don't even type it into a Word doc, I just sit down and right it until I'm finished.
It is spelled "write". :smallmad: /writernitpick

[NeoSeraphi]

There we go! New spell list, complete with a few Domain-only spells!

[Ziegander]

Wow. Now that's a domain.

[NeoSeraphi]

Wow. Now that's a domain.

Thank you.

[Yitzi]

Mayaheine, from Dungeonscape, has the War Domain and the bastard sword as her favored weapon. Xan Yae in Complete Divine has "Monk Weapons" listed as favored weapons, including kama, nunchaku, sai, shuriken and siangham, all of which are exotic, and Xan Yae offers the War Domain. Zuoken from the same book also has Monk Weapons and the War Domain. Mockery from the Faiths of Eberron book offers War and has the Kama as a favored weapon. Spirits of the Past from Faiths of Eberron has War and offers a Double Scimitar. Marduk from Sandstorm offers the Net and has the War Domain. Re-Horakhty from Deities and Demigods offers the War Domain and favors the Khopesh.

In short, Yitzi, you did not, in fact, recall correctly.

Actually it wasn't an issue of my recalling, as I simply hadn't encountered those before. But point taken.

Of course, the fact that no Core deities have the War domain and an exotic favored weapon is still relevant, as it makes the "RAI was that you can get exotic weapon proficiency if appropriate" point far easier to make.

Of course, the new one is clearly more impressive.

[NeoSeraphi]

Bump in hopes of some more comments.

[Rapidghoul]

So the difference between vanilla Divine Power and the level 7 version provided here is that it 1. gets Quicken Spell built in, 2. allows Bull's Strength (or indeed a regular Divine Power) to stack with it, and 3. gives more hit points? All good things to add, but I would expect to see a buffed up version of the spell to grant a better bonus of the same type (to prevent the aforementioned Divine Power + Greater Divine Power super-buff), or maybe the duration increased to minutes rather than rounds / level rather than making it a swift cast. The 5 hp instead of 1 is much more in line with a step-up version of the spell.

Again, it's no doubt a good spell, but for emulating a specific level 4 spell trying to fill a level 7 spell's shoes, it seems to miss its roots a little.

[NeoSeraphi]

So the difference between vanilla Divine Power and the level 7 version provided here is that it 1. gets Quicken Spell built in, 2. allows Bull's Strength (or indeed a regular Divine Power) to stack with it, and 3. gives more hit points? All good things to add, but I would expect to see a buffed up version of the spell to grant a better bonus of the same type (to prevent the aforementioned Divine Power + Greater Divine Power super-buff), or maybe the duration increased to minutes rather than rounds / level rather than making it a swift cast. The 5 hp instead of 1 is much more in line with a step-up version of the spell.


Why would you cast divine power after you cast greater? All you get is a +6 enhancement bonus to Strength (and some temporary hit points). You could get that from a +6 belt of giant strength and save yourself the standard action and the 4th level spell slot.



Again, it's no doubt a good spell, but for emulating a specific level 4 spell trying to fill a level 7 spell's shoes, it seems to miss its roots a little.

It still gives you full BAB. It still gives you temporary hit points. It still gives you a Strength bonus, just of a rarer type. Making it +6 profane is much better than making it +8 enhancement (and it makes more sense to me. Sacred and profane bonuses come from deities. So do divine spells)

[motionmatrix]

It also makes sense that a war cleric would want to be able to "turn into a fighter" as a swift action, so he can start swinging. And the change to the bonus type is good too, since a strength bonus that can stack with enhancement bonus seems appropriate by the time you can cast 7th level spells. And Seraphi is correct, it is thematically appropriate.

This is a better war domain, even with that Power Word Kill anticlimactic crap. Not every spell on the list should be great.

Have you thought of removing the weapon focus feat and instead granting the character access to weapon specialization when he meets the prerequisites? I would not actually grant, personally.

[NeoSeraphi]

It also makes sense that a war cleric would want to be able to "turn into a fighter" as a swift action, so he can start swinging. And the change to the bonus type is good too, since a strength bonus that can stack with enhancement bonus seems appropriate by the time you can cast 7th level spells. And Seraphi is correct, it is thematically appropriate.

This is a better war domain, even with that Power Word Kill anticlimactic crap. Not every spell on the list should be great.

Have you thought of removing the weapon focus feat and instead granting the character access to weapon specialization when he meets the prerequisites? I would not actually grant, personally.

Nah, that gets too close to favored soul territory. I'd rather not deal with that.

[Rapidghoul]

Why would you cast divine power after you cast greater? All you get is a +6 enhancement bonus to Strength (and some temporary hit points). You could get that from a +6 belt of giant strength and save yourself the standard action and the 4th level spell slot.
...and it makes more sense to me. Sacred and profane bonuses come from deities. So do divine spells

Yeah, my point was merely that the two spells would have stacking bonuses to Strength, so you could use Divine Power and Greater Divine Power to grant different (read: stacking) bonuses despite being thematically the same spell. It just seems odd to me is all. Like I said, I like the spell as well as the whole domain. That one thing just stuck out in my mind.